Merry Meet excerpt
"I can't believe we're finally here," said Kate Morgan, looking around the room and smiling at the handsome guy seated across from her. Their table was in the corner, next to a window. Outside a fine, gray March mist floated across the pier on which the restaurant was built, but from time to time it parted and Kate could see the reflection of the moon on the ocean. The small candle on the table in front of her flickered cheerfully inside its glass holder and made her forget the chill that had wrapped around the town only a few days before the official start of spring. "Hey, I told you--I always keep my promises," Scott Coogan said, his lips parting in the carefree smile that was one of the things Kate found so appealing about her boyfriend. Her boyfriend. The very words sent a tingle of excitement flowing through her skin like electricity. As she looked into Scott's blue eyes, Kate couldn't believe that only six weeks earlier she and Scott had never even spoken to one another. If it hadn't been for the spell I cast, she thought to herself. The spell. Kate still felt terrible about the spell. When she had found the book of spells in among the other books she'd checked out of the library for her report on the witchcraft persecutions for history class, she'd thought it was all ridiculous. The rituals and chants were fun to read, but she didn't think they would really do anything. Not until she tried one. The "Come to Me Love Spell" had seemed harmless when she'd read it in the book. It had even seemed harmless when she'd tried using it to get Scott to notice her. And when he had noticed her, she was as surprised as anyone else. Surprised and happy. At least until all the bad things started happening afterward. But she didn't want to think about that anymore. It had been awful. If it hadn't been for Cooper and Annie, she didn't know where she'd be right now. Probably still trying to figure out how to reverse the spell that had gone so out of control. If she could have done it at all. In the end she and her friends had stopped the spell. And best of all, Scott was still with her, even without the use of magic. Still, sometimes Kate found herself wondering if he really liked her or if he was still a little bit enchanted by the ritual she'd performed using a doll that resembled him. She still wasn't entirely sure what she thought about magic and witchcraft, even though she'd seen for herself what it could do. "What are you thinking about?" Scott's voice jerked Kate out of her daydream."Nothing," she said quickly. "Just about how nice it is to be here with you." "I'm sorry it's taken so long," Scott said, picking a roll from the basket in front of him and spreading butter on it. "What with school and work, and your basketball games and this whole scouting thing, I didn't think we'd ever be free on the same night." That was something else Kate didn't want to think about'the scouting thing. Scott, a senior, was the captain of the Beecher Falls High School football team. He was a great player, and several colleges had been interested in him because of his football skills. For the past month they'd been taking him on tours of various campuses and trying to get him to agree to come to their schools. At first it had been just one school, one not too far from Beecher Falls. But then three other schools had come calling--schools that were far away'and now Scott was trying to decide which one he wanted to go to. Kate was trying to be supportive, but she was terrified that Scott was going to end up at a school somewhere across the country. She wished she were a senior too, instead of just a sophomore. Then maybe she and Scott could go to school together. But she wasn't, and as the end of the year came closer and closer, the more she found herself wondering what was going to happen to them after graduation. "You're worrying about the school thing, aren't you?" Scott asked, chewing on the bread. Kate nodded, trying to not look sad. She didn't want to ruin what was supposed to be their most romantic date yet, a belated Valentine's Day dinner. They'd had to skip the real thing because Scott had gone on the first of his school visits that weekend. He'd promised to take her out later, and now they were sitting across from one another at a great restaurant and Kate was holding the beautiful red rose Scott had presented her with when he picked her up. "I told you before," Scott said, taking her other hand in his. "It doesn't matter where I go. Whether it's here or somewhere else, we'll still be together." "I know," Kate said. "It just seems like the year is flying by too quickly. I wish we had more time." "We have all the time in the world," Scott said as the waitress arrived with their food and Kate was forced to let go of his hand. They ate happily, each taking bites from the other's plate. Then, when they were finished, the waitress appeared with two bowls of chocolate mousse covered in whipped cream and strawberries. "Be careful," she said as she set one of the bowls in front of Kate. "The chef put some of his secret ingredients in here tonight. Make sure you don't bite down too hard." "What does she mean by that?" Kate asked as she dipped her spoon into the chocolate. "Got me," Scott replied. "Maybe there are nuts in here or something." Kate took a tentative bite of the mousse... Category:Excerpts